Have Coupons, Will Travel

So I hardly did any shopping this past week.  And with the travel I have scheduled next week, there won't be much then either.  I have two weeks worth of coupons that I have yet to clip.  But now that I have been couponing for five full months, I realize that's totally OK.  It's OK not to chase down every deal.  Heck, I don't want or have storage for every deal.  Ha.  But I did manage a few things at Pchop and then a two minute run into Rite-Aid too.

When I first started couponing, I was saddened to learn that not all stores are the same.  Specifically meaning that some (in my case) Price Chopper grocery stores will double coupons and some will not.  NONE in the Capital Region will double coupons.  Don't even get me started on how absurd and unfair that is!  On top of that, those that do double coupons, do so differently.  Some double up to $0.50 (so making them as high as $1), some double up to $0.99 (so making them as high as $1.98) and some double up to $1 (so making them as high as $2). 

When I realized that the Price Chopper in Manchester, VT doubles coupons up to $1 (so making them as high as $2), I knew that the next time I was there I would also do some grocery shopping.  Yes, I take my coupons nearly everywhere.  It's crazy, but also great to have them handy in the car just in case I spot a must have deal.

And this weekend happened to be my lucky weekend.  Friday before lunch I was Vermont bound.  Why?  Well mainly to get my hair cut.  Yes, I drive 75 minutes one way to get my hair done.  Which will explain to those that know me in person why I go months in dire need of hair help.  It's a looong drive just to get a haircut.  But you know, we all have our thing in life.  And this is my thing!  I have been to half a dozen hair places in the Cap Region of NY and have yet to find a person even half as fabulous as Patti.  I make a day or weekend of it usually- shopping and eating and sight seeing and sometimes in the summer I do a little berry picking too. 

So after I was done for the day, I popped into the Manchester Price Chopper. 

First, it's teeny tiny.  I didn't realize that it was so small.  Like you could barely get a cart down the aisles.  I mysteriously didn't have one of the main coupons I was hoping to use.  And being so small, they didn't have many items I was hoping to buy.  I swear I circled that store 45 times before just settling on what was in my cart and checking out.  I am just not good at shopping in unfamiliar stores.

Total value purchased ... $56.05

Paid out of pocket ... $19.88

Percentage saved ... 64.5%

Nearly every coupon I used was a $1/1 coupon, doubling to $2/1.  LOVE that!  I suddenly have found tons of coffee creamer deals so they are sitting pretty in my freezer until I need them.  I've never had this brand of rice and it's not really that healthy but I figure it is always good to have quick things on hand.  But all in all, it was a successful trip.  Not quite what I had hoped for but not bad for having to abandon my plan and just wing it in a new place.